A Talk Under a Moonlit Night
by HunterofArtemis32
Summary: Even if he wasn't the greatest hero the world had ever seen, he'd be the greatest hero in Annabeth's eyes. And that's all that mattered.


**I decided to poke my head out of my hibernation. I can't believe the Percy Jackson series has ended. After I read that last page in BoO, my heart sunk because it was over. **

**Tiny spoiler: I was kinda upset about the lack of Percabeth moments. Fans who've read the book know what I mean, so I was inspired to write this. **

**P.S. This is written in the middle of BoO, but there are no spoilers. Enjoy!**

Percy was leaning against the rail, his hands clasped together as he stared at the darkened sea below him. It was nighttime, and the moon was large and bright, painting the water with a milky glaze. So many thoughts were running through his head; starting up from the moment he was claimed as Poseidon's son, to the Titan War, to falling into Tartarus, to reaching deep inside and finding a part of him dark enough to almost drown Akhyls in poison and terrify Annabeth. Seeing that look on her face had killed him. He realized that maybe he wasn't as good as hero as everyone thought...

"Hey you." A voice greeted. He knew exactly who it was and a smile donned his lips. Her tan arms wrapped around his waist from behind.

"Hey," he replied in a whisper.

Annabeth joined at the rail, her blonde hair thrown into a messy bun. She held out a copper-colored coin. "Penny for your thoughts?"

He took it, sneaking a glance at the daughter of Athena. He tried the compliment card to avoid the actual subject. "Just thinking about how beautiful you look in the moonlight."

"As flattering as that is," she nudged his shoulder, "I know that's not it."

He rolled his bottom lip in between his teeth. "About the past several years, and how amazing my life would've been if Hera hadn't kidnapped me."

"Trust me. You're not the only one," she shared, playing with her fingers. "I think about it too. I didn't even get to give you your Christmas present."

Percy chuckled. "I'm sure I would have loved it."

She suddenly pinned him under a startling gaze. "That's not all that's on your mind, is it?"

He sighed. There was no hiding anything from his girlfriend. It wasn't just the fact of her being too smart; she knew him _too _well. He swallowed a large lump in his throat. "I'm not a good hero."

"What?" Annabeth looked taken back. Her grey eyes were surprised. "How much blue dye are you absorbing?"

"I'm not, Annabeth. I've screwed up a lot. I haven't kept promises. Until those curses, I never realized how much agony I've caused people, even monsters. I didn't even think I could tap into a dark side, and before I knew it, I almost drowned someone in poison. I saw the pale look on your face and it hit me so hard in the gut because I had caused that. You were terrified of _me_, Annabeth. I couldn't believe I was capable of such. I just-" His voice was raw and thick with emotion. He was done bottling it up. He lowered his head onto his forearms and squeezed his eyes shut. "I never want to go through that again. It killed me, Beth. It _killed _me."

His eyes stung with tears. His chest ached like there was a bowling ball resting on it. His head swarmed and throbbed. He was so tired. Tired of being the puppet gods could play with. Tired of never getting a moment to be a teenager. Tired of feeling like the world was on top of his shoulders- and he knew what that felt like.

Percy didn't even fight when Annabeth pulled him over to a chair and sat in his lap. And when she cradled his head to her chest, he started sobbing. They were muffled by her T-shirt so the others wouldn't hear. He didn't want them to see him crack. Annabeth, besides his mom, was the only person to see this vulnerable, this broken

After he finally calmed down and could breathe normally again, she put a finger under his chin and lifted his head for their eyes to meet. "Percy, listen to me. You are a good hero."

"Anna-"

"Shh. I told you to listen." He closed his mouth. "Perseus Jackson, you are by far one of the _best _heroes to ever wander the earth. You're the strongest demigod. You've accomplished so much and taken on more than one could imagine. Why do you think you're the leader of Camp Half-Blood? Or why Camp Jupiter named you praetor in such a short time? Because what makes a great hero is not just skills in battle. What makes a great hero is sacrifice, humility, and admittance to faults. You hold these attributes. That's why you're our leader. That's why that tattoo is on your arm."

"But what about the ones I've failed? Bob, Nico, Calypso- how do they fit into this?"

"Bob forgave you. You reached out to Nico. I've seen the moonlace in your mother's flower bed. You haven't failed them," Annabeth assured. "Don't let past mistakes haunt you because you've made up for them- many times. And yes, those curses showed you relentless pain that others bestowed on you, but you beat it. You didn't let it win."

They sat in silence for a moment, Percy chewing on every word she had said. He gazed into her stormy grey eyes, seeing the truth in them.

"You're right," he whispered.

Her fingers curled in the ends of his hair. "Well, duh. Daughter of wisdom here." His lips lifted in a crooked smile at her teasing. "Now I don't want to here this nonsense again, or things will get ugly."

"Got it."

She kissed him, the taste of Cherry Cola lingering on her lips. "Now come on. I don't want Buford the Table to walk out and scream at us."

She stood from his lap and headed towards the rooms, Percy staring after her. He was beyond grateful for her. Even when his life turned for the worse, she was always next to him. He was always next to her. That's the way it's always been since they were twelve.

When they were dangling from that ledge above Tartarus, he hated the tight squeeze his heart had as her hand started getting sweaty and the image of her falling alone appeared in his thoughts. He didn't even think about it. All he did was look her dead in the eyes and said, _you're not getting away from me_. _Not again._ She replied, _as long as we're together._ He had thrown his head up and yelled at Nico to promise to meet him on the other side. Percy knew Nico was the only one that could.

And as his hand let go, Percy knew he had done the right thing.

Then he realized: even if he wasn't the greatest hero the world had ever seen, he'd be the greatest hero in Annabeth's eyes.

And to him, that's all that mattered.


End file.
